Bargaining for the Billionaire by JM Stewart Read Free Book Online Page A

gazed down at her. “You do make such pretty babies, though, Cade.”
    Emily had a full head of thick, dark hair like her father, and big wide eyes, and she smelled heavenly, like baby powder and sweetness. She wasn’t fussy, either, but content to let people pass her around—so long as she had a shoulder to lounge on. Every time Maddie saw her, her heart gave that impossible little twinge. Okay, so she’d admit it. She wanted this. The whole fairytale, what these two had found. What Christina and Sebastian had found. A man who’d love her in spite of all her weird little quirks, and she wanted a yard full of pretty, red-haired babies to go with him.
    “Besides.” She sighed. “That would require Prince Charming to actually have my address. I think he’s gotten lost.”
    It didn’t help, of course, that her heart still hung onto the one man she’d never have, which was pathetic, considering three years had passed since he’d walked out of her life. Or rather, let her go.
    She didn’t have to ask to know what Hannah would say about the matter. “Would you do it again, if you could?” Hannah had asked her that once, referring, of course, to her decision to end her relationship with Grayson.
    The conversation had begun because Hannah had contemplated an affair with Cade. Hannah had been as scared as Maddie was now, afraid of falling in love. Maddie had told her to go for it or she’d regret it, because Maddie had a heart full of regrets. None of which she knew what to do with. The day she’d found that article on the front page of a local newspaper, her heart had sunk. She’d been so angry and so hurt; she’d left Grayson at that romantic little cabin all by himself. She’d stood him up. Back then, though, she’d been so sure she’d made the right decision.
    Now? Not so much. Her mind filled with “what-if’s.” What if she’d gone? What if she’d given him a chance to explain? Would things have turned out differently?
    Except now she was stuck. How did she move on when she wasn’t sure she’d made the right decision? When it was too late to do anything about it anyway? When she was sure she’d met the man she’d wanted to marry, only to discover he wasn’t who he said he was? That he’d essentially lied his way into her bed?
    Okay, so she hadn’t slept with Grayson. They’d shared a hell of a lot, though. She’d shared things with him she didn’t tell just anybody. So while she couldn’t deny she had regrets, the sense of betrayal went deep, and she didn’t know how to get over that or let it go.
    “Oh, I’ll bet Prince Charming’s closer than you think.”
    Cade’s odd comment, and the I’ve got a secret tone to his voice had Maddie glancing up. As if his words weren’t enough of a puzzle, he grinned at her, something mysterious working behind his eyes.
    “Cade!”
    Behind her, Hannah let out a hushed reprimand, and Maddie turned sideways to peer at her. Her best friend glared none-too-subtly at her husband, but at Maddie’s look her frown tipped into an awkward smile. Okay, she’d known Hannah long enough to know she couldn’t hide a secret if she tried. Hannah was too honest. Despite her impassive expression, her best friend had a worried, shifty look about her. The same look Christina often got when discussing Maddie’s blind date to the auction.
    Cade laughed, light-hearted and dismissive, and shook his head, holding up his hands in mock surrender. “I just meant you shouldn’t give up hope. Look at me. I’d given up on women altogether before Hannah waltzed her way into my life.” Cade winked at her. “You never know.”
    He breezed past Maddie to Hannah, hooked an arm around her waist and tugged her against his side. Maddie could only stare for a moment, suspicion itching at the edges of her consciousness. Why did the two of them look like they knew something she didn’t? Despite their intimate embrace, Hannah still sent her husband an, albeit subtle, warning